Greg hopped aboard The Hummingbird Pub Bus that has been my summer gig on Galiano Island, one of the Gulf Islands off the coast of British Columbia. Like many visitors to the island, he had sailed into Montague Harbour and was off to the pub for dinner and a pint. He had a fun ride and we got chatting. He bought a copy of my book Bus Tales: How to Change the World from 9 to 5 and a few weeks later he contacted me with some great feedback.
As a Bus Driver on a Mission, my intention is to bring a little joy into other people’s lives. My summer gig driving the Hummingbird Pub bus on Galiano Island gives me the fantastic opportunity to meet the most amazing people from all over the world.
A couple of weeks ago I met a lovely family visiting from Texas. My strongest memory was how charmingly open their youngest daughter, Emily, was. She wanted a hug from me and her mother was concerned that she not go and hug strangers. I jokingly quipped, “Well, they don’t come any stranger than me!”
Every summer my job is to pick up people who sail into Montague harbour on Galiano Island and ferry them on a big yellow school bus five miles inland to the Hummingbird Pub where they can enjoy a meal and a few pints. I’ve become a bit of a legend on the Pacific northwest for the old time tunes and fun ride.
One evening I got a phone call and a very excited voice on the other end of the line said, “Someone at the pub has a boat that is sinking at the dock.”
While in Seattle for a Transit Conference I took a break to go roller blading around the lovely Green Lake which sits in the middle of some great little neighbourhoods. Sitting on the front seat of my car with the door open I was putting on my blades when I saw a charming little girl, about seven years old, walk by me carefully carrying a small cardboard boxtop full of colourful flower blossoms.
During my 21 years in the operator’s seat I was assaulted three times, once by another driver. I clearly understand and sympathize with how confronting and fearful it can be. Nonetheless, I disagree with the knee jerk solutions offered by transit authorities. Additional security cameras only give evidence after the fact and do not protect the driver in the moment of assault. The implementation of plexiglass shields on buses is akin to walling up your children so they won’t get hurt. Both of these “solutions” fly in the face of the multi-faceted services drivers provide.
Each driver comes into contact with 150,000 people a year. It is a unique opportunity to make a difference in the world.
If you’ve ever ridden public transit, you know that when people clamber aboard a bus they seem turned off, as if the time spent travelling is a kind of numbed out limbo realm that doesn’t really count as part of their real life.
In addition to the impassive faces, the atmosphere in the bus is permeated with a dismal, unhappy energy as if it were full of people heading for a day of hard labour at the salt mines rather than what I believe is the truth: that they are participants in the miracle of another precious day in their lives.
My mission is simple: I know that as a bus driver-or in fact anyone who works in the public-is in a position to make a positive difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. How I endeavoured to bring real fun and joy into people’s daily commute and, by extension, into their lives is what my book Bus Tales: How to Change the World is all about.
As a bus driver, I believe that we can stand proud in the fact that our “average joe” job provides us with a unique opportunity to reach out and make a positive difference in the lives of the hundreds of thousands of people we each meet every year.
I invite anyone—bus driver or not—to pick up the baton and be an ambassador for change by playing with the tools I have outlined in my book. And I mean play. The whole idea is to have fun with this, to stretch yourself in your job and your life by realizing that what you do and how you do it has a real impact on others. And equally important: Don’t underestimate the powerful impact that acknowledging others has on your own health, happiness, well-being and job satisfaction!
When you acknowledge someone it is like giving them a small bit of verbal candy: it leaves a sweet taste in the interaction.
In my experience, people are tickled pink when you remark on a unique aspect of who they are.
We all want to be seen in the best possible light. When we are acknowledged for who we are, we naturally light up and feel good. This positive feedback reflection gives us hope, inspires us to be our best and makes us feel connected to the larger community.
The Art of Acknowledgement is the heart of my book Bus Tales: How to Change the World from 9 to 5 and the basis of my talks and sharinars.